Getty Jason Terry #4 of the Boston Celtics.
It appears Will Hardy won’t be the only former Boston Celtics personnel joining the Utah Jazz’s coaching staff for this upcoming season. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on July 16, 2022, that former Celtics guard and NBA Sixth Man of the Year Jason Terry has been hired to join Hardy’s coaching staff as an assistant.
The Utah Jazz are finalizing hiring NBA G League Grand Rapids head coach Jason Terry as an assistant coach on Will Hardy’s staff, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
After spending eight seasons with the Dallas Mavericks from 2004 to 2012, Terry joined the Celtics for the 2012-13 NBA season. In his lone season with the Celtics, Terry averaged 10.1 points a game while shooting 43.4 percent from the field and 37.2 percent from three.
Terry was then included in the trade between the Celtics and the Brooklyn Nets during the 2013 NBA Draft that sent Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to Brooklyn and netted Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown a few years after that. Terry made pit stops with the Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, and Milwaukee Bucks before his career as a player ended in 2018.
When it was all said and done for him, Terry averaged 13.4 points and 3.8 assists while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 38 percent from three in the 19 years he played in the NBA.
Jason Terry’s Coaching History
Terry has been a fast riser since starting his career in the basketball coaching field. He was first hired as an assistant coach for his alma mater at the University of Arizona in May of 2020.
19-year NBA veteran and former Wildcat Jason Terry has accepted assistant coaching job at Arizona, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Terry departs Mavs, where he’s been assistant GM of Texas Legends. Announcement expected Thursday.
Terry was only there for a year before leaving that job to take the head coaching position for the Grand Rapids Gold, the G League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets, in August of 2021.
Jason Terry is finalizing a deal to become the new head of the Grand Rapids Gold, the new G League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets, sources tell ESPN. Terry has been an assistant at the University of Arizona. He played 19 years in the NBA.
After Quin Snyder stepped down as Utah’s Head Coach, the Jazz interviewed Terry as his replacement before ultimately deciding to hire Hardy as their next head coach. Charania also reported that Terry had received interest from other NBA teams for assistant positions.
The Utah Jazz have received permission to interview NBA G League Grand Rapids Gold coach Jason Terry for the franchise’s head coaching job, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Terry is also under consideration for assistant positions with other NBA teams.
Evidently, Terry left a good enough impression that the Jazz offered him a position as an assistant coach. Evidently, there was mutual interest between the two sides since Terry took the job. Terry’s former teammate Brendan Haywood, who played with Terry from 2010 to 2012, praised the Jazz for hiring Terry as an assistant.
Other Former Celtics Personnel Interviewed with Utah
Jason Terry was not the only former Celtic personnel who had interviewed for the Jazz’s open head coaching position. Another former Celtics player who had been interviewed for the job was Sam Cassell, who had been part of the 2007-08 championship team and is currently an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Utah Jazz are interviewing Philadelphia 76ers assistant Sam Cassell for their open head coaching job, sources tell me and @Tjonesonthenba. Cassell was part of the 2008 champion Celtics, constructed by now-Jazz CEO Danny Ainge, and has been an assistant coach since 2009.
Former Celtics assistants were also interviewed for the job, including Jerome Allen, who had been an assistant on Brad Stevens’ coaching staff from 2015 to 2021 before leaving to join Dwane Casey’s coaching staff for the Detroit Pistons.
The Utah Jazz received permission to interview Detroit Pistons assistant Jerome Allen for the franchise’s coaching job, sources tell ESPN. Jazz are beginning first-round of zoom interviews over next few days.
Another former Celtics assistant who just hit the market during the offseason was Frank Vogel. Vogel, who had been fired by the Los Angeles Lakers after the team missed the 2022 playoffs, was an assistant for the Celtics from 2001 to 2005.
When the Jazz had come to their final decision, current Celtics assistant Joe Mazzulla and former Celtics player Adrian Griffin, who played for the team from 1999 to 2001, were among the finalists for the job.
With Hardy, Terry, and former President Basketball of Operations Danny Ainge working for the Jazz, they now have several former Celtics personnel on their staff.
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Former Celtics Join Danny Ainge’s Utah Jazz Project